


Anchors and Lighthouses

by Genkai



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: Camping, Fluff, One Shot, Romantic Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-03
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:35:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25690687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Genkai/pseuds/Genkai
Summary: After her evaluation, Star decides she needs to spend her waking hours practicing more spells. After a day of non-stop work, Marco lures Star outside where they can take a magic-free vacation. Star needs some time to relax and what better way to do that than with marshmallows and scary stories under the night's sky?
Relationships: Star Butterfly/Marco Diaz
Comments: 1
Kudos: 18





	Anchors and Lighthouses

**Author's Note:**

> I submitted this to a writing contest on reddit and thought I'd share it here.
> 
> This takes places directly following "Baby" in season two, where Star was evaluated.
> 
> I haven't written for SVTFOE before but I'm happy to give it a go! Marco and Star are still "just friends" at the moment with budding feelings to respect the canon events thus far and those to come.

“You’re too hard on yourself.” Marco’s voice attempted to penetrate the atmosphere of regret and doubt surrounding Star.

On the other side of the door, her back was still pressed firmly against the wood, refusing to budge.

“Come on, Star. Your evaluation went great.” Marco rested his forehead against the bedroom door of his best friend, who happened to be from an entirely different dimension than his own. Before Star crashed into his life, Marco had no idea just how amazing the world could be. Adventuring with Star had suddenly expanded the young man’s world into something frighteningly vast and equally thrilling. Friends of Marco would readily cite that Maroc was not a carnivore for danger. But Star had brought an array of strangeness that Marco was unable to refuse. 

And by now, he found himself rather fond of Star and her strangeness.

In fact he was developing quite the appetite for her antics. 

“You’ve been practicing all day. I can’t believe I’m saying this but I think you’ve gotta take a break.” Marco spoke up. Star had passed the evaluation but had to accept that she needed to understand the basics. The spells she had created were unique and originated from her very heart. But Star knew a princess couldn’t call herself that without being able to move a simple apple. “Just come outside, I’ve got a surprise.” Marco stepped back and rubbed the back of his head, unsure if it would offer his friend any solace. 

In her room, Star Butterfly glanced out the window, the sun dipping down the horizon, basting the neighborhood in a mixture of peach and plum hues. The blonde’s shoulders slumped as she took several stops forward and tossed her wand onto her bed, letting out a sigh of resignation. “Alright.” She turned as Marco opened the door and held out his hand to her. “I didn’t realize how late it was getting.” She bit the inside of her mouth as a low rumble echoed inside of her. “I could really go for some tacos.”

“Way ahead of you!” Marco said as Star grabbed his hand, the brunette leading her down the hall and down the stairs. They crossed through the living room and kitchen as Marco led her outside into the backyard. “I figured spending all day practicing magic would be pretty draining so I wanted to treat you to a magic-free vacation. In our backyard.” He laughed nervously. Two sleeping bags were laid out between a steady fire, fueled by logs and old newspaper. The fire was cackling wildly, kept at bay by a circle of stones. He eased himself down onto the red sleeping bag and Star circled around to the blue one, sitting down with her legs crossed.

“I know it’s not really much--”

“I love it, Marco. Really, I do!” Star cut him off. Her cornflower orbs surveyed the space. While Marco didn’t have a magic wand to change the world, he had somehow done the impossible and changed hers. Meeting Baby and realizing her strengths didn’t necessarily erase her weaknesses and shortcomings, Star began to doubt herself. She felt as though she had let so many people down by destroying her wand and losing the spell book along with Glossaryck. The weight upon her shoulders felt so great and at times the smile she wore was forced. 

But the current smile brought to Star’s face was small but sincere.

“Thank you.” Star assured him. 

Marco was more than a friend to Star. He was like her anchor. He kept her grounded, unwilling to let the tide of her mind carry her away too far.

And if Marco was Star’s anchor, she was his lighthouse.

Star gave Marco’s life a light that it had been lacking for so long. Before Star, his life had been colorful but those colors were muted and dull. Star offered him vibrancy and guided him toward the person he was meant to be. Star was a ray of light that always brought Marco home.

Her energy was the color of his life now.

He gestured to the foiled wrapped parcel beside her. Her eyes lit up as she unwrapped the warm burrito from Britta’s and took a massive bite. Marco unwrapped his own and the two spent the next minute consuming their dinner. Between them, the fire continued to crack and dance, every so often embers would flicker upwards, only to be consumed by the darkness that had settled over Echo Creek. Above the pair, the moon was on display, a small sliver obscured by the shade of space. Star crumpled the foil into a tight ball and squeezed it in the palm of her hand. Her body and spirit were tired and she knew had Maro not intervened, she would have been up all night.

If only Glossaryck could see her now, he’d laugh.

“Hope you still have room for dessert.” Marco said as he got up and collected his and her balls of foil before he hurried back inside. Star watched him go, her gaze shifting back to the campfire. The hypnotic flames began a slow-dance as their energy was dying down. The backdoor opened and Marco returned. He wore a grin, arms full of items which he dumped down on his sleeping bag. “S’mores!” He held up a bag of marshmallows. 

“Ooh, yum!” Star let out a gasp of delight. 

Marco sat back down and was about to prepare the iron skewers before he noticed a new source of warmth beside him. He jerked his head to Star had sat beside him, her pink and purple legs curled under her mint green dress. Star leaned against him and held out her hand, “Gimme that stick, I’m gonna stab a bunch of fluffy marshmallows.” Star giggled, a hint of manic glee in her declaration. Marco handed her the skewer and bag as he placed one on his, being careful to impale it right in the center. Meanwhile, Star was less methodical, shoving four white pillows of sugar unevenly onto her skewer. “Oooh yeah.” She smiled, extending her arm out to let the fire roast her sacrifices to golden perfection.

Marco looked to her and shook his head as he did the same, rotating his every so often so it melted evenly.

A sudden squeal from Star snapped Marco out of his daze. While he had been focused on making the perfect s’more, he hadn’t realized two of Star’s marshmallows had melted and fallen into the fire, as they had been skewered rather unevenly. And the other two had caught fire. “Woah, Star!” Marco pulled his skewer back and quickly put his hand over hers, pulling hers out of the fire. Blowing on the burning blobs of sugar, a ribbon of grey smoke tickled their noses. Star coughed and looked to see a layer of black had covered her remaining two marshmallows. “You’ve gotta be careful.” Marco told her as he let go of her hand. “Here, take mine.” He handed her his skewer. Accepting it sheepishly, she stared at it.

It was picture perfect.

“Thanks, Marco...” She replied as she watched him try to peel off the mess at the end of her skewer. He had worked hard to roast it perfectly and yet gave it to her without needing to think. Star began to frown as she heard Marco struggling.

“Ow!” Marco hissed as the molten marshmallow stuck to his fingers. In his effort to clean up, he had made more of a mess than anything. In his moment of pain, Marco had accidentally discarded the stick, it having been thrown and landing somewhere behind him. He looked down at his fingertips, a mild burn that some ointment could soothe. Marco sighed and looked to Star, “Guess we gotta share now.” 

“Give me your hand.” Star told him, reaching for his right hand, taking it in both of her own. Star brought his fingertips to her lips, kissing them gently. The hearts painted on her cheeks began to glow as a cooling sensation hit Marco’s fingertips, snaking up his arm and down his back. Suddenly the stinging pain was gone. Pulling back, Star smiled, the glow fading. “There, how do you feel?”

He blinked a few times.

It shouldn’t surprise him. But it did.

“You’re full of surprises, Star.” Marco smiled back, his hand slowly clasping with hers. Once again her light found him. For a few moments, the two friends enjoyed the comfortable silence as the flames continued to waltz together. Chocolate eyes locked with sapphire as both sparkled, the glow of the fire casting a warm glow. “Um you might want to fix your…” Marco’s voice trailed off as he looked down at her lap, the skewer long forgotten. A soft blush crossed Star’s face as she jumped back slightly and picked up the thin metal rod. 

“Right, right!” Star laughed nervously. She took a graham cracker and snapped it in half before she added a piece of chocolate and peeled the marshmallow off the skewer, it sandwiched firmly between the other layers. “Here.” Star broke it in half and handed the treat to Marco who accepted it. Star ate her half in one bite while Marco took two. Star licked her lips and set the skewer down between them, deciding against having any more. “I needed this.” She said after some careful consideration. “I needed to get out of my head for a little bit.”

“And out of your room.” Marco added, nudging her playfully. 

Another blush crossed her face as she looked off, her chest heavy for a few moments.

“I missed seeing your face.” Marco explained as he looked into the fire, his arms resting on his bent knees in front of him now. He had heard her yelling spells all day, most of them said in a tone of anger or desperation but sometimes there would be long pauses and Marco would pace back and forth, unsure if he should say anything or let her figure it out. He could help her with math or history homework but when it came to magic he felt useless.

Helpless to help Star.

From the day they met, he helped her. It wasn’t something he thought about, it was just something he did.

“I know I can’t really help you with mastering spells or fix your wand but I’m always gonna be by your side, Star.” Marco said softly. Star scooted closer, closing the gap between them. His head tilted toward her. “I know you think you’re struggling but you’re doing great. You’re strong and creative and will make a great Queen.” He told her.

Her heart quickened as she tried to find her voice.

His support meant everything to her. 

Star wrapped her arms around Marco, her actions having to take the place of words her heart could not yet unearth.

“How about a scary story before bed?” Marco suggested, reaching around to rub her back softly. Star nodded enthusiastically as she moved back to her own sleeping bag so Marco could set the tone properly. Marco began to tell a story of children from a nearby town who had played a game at midnight which summoned a sinister creature. The ritual itself was simple but had precise rules. As Maro spoke in an ominous tone, Star nervously munched on marshmallows. The story Marco told, explained how only one player had survived the game and they would continue to play, if only to feed the creature summoned with fresh souls.

A chill ran down Star’s spine as she set the emptied bag of marshmallows beside. “That’s pretty terrifying.” She considered quietly. “We should try it!” 

“What? No! Didn’t you learn anything?” Marco blurted back.

“What time is it?”

“We’re not playing.” Marco said firmly.

Star sighed and shrugged. She knew Janna and the others would be eager to give the ritual a try some time so for now she gave up on swaying Marco. “Alright alright.” She then let out a small yawn, her body and mind signalling that it was time to turn in soon. “I’m not gonna drop this though, Diaz.” She warned him. Marco knew her well enough to know that once Star had an idea, it would be hard to change her mind. He only hoped that if she was crazy enough to try the ritual that he’d be with her to make sure nothing happened to her. Star flopped down on her crimson sleeping bag and rolled onto her side, facing Marco. “You’re lucky I’m too tired to share a scary story.” Star told him.

Marco pushed the items off his sleeping bag and glanced at his friend.

Considering her origin, he didn’t doubt she had several lifetime’s of scary stories to tell. 

And he was thankfully that she wasn’t going to feed his nightmares anything tonight.

“Night, Star.” Marco said as he got into his sleeping bag and rolled to face her. Sleep found Marco quite quickly while Star thwarted off sleep a bit longer. Her mind drifted back to the scary story she had in mind though it was more saddening than terrifying. The scary story she was going to propose was a simple one: A girl and a boy meet and become fast friends, they meet many strange creatures and go on crazy adventures together. But one day the girl lost the boy, the girl too weak to protect him and the girl spent her days haunted by his ghost, missing him until she was devoured by sorrow.

Star shut her eyes tightly.

There was a possibility that one day something might happen to Marco, that she may get him killed. It wasn’t just a scary story for Star Butterfly, but a chilling possibility. Losing Marco frightened Star. She had to be strong not just for those of Mewni but also her family and friends. Marco’s family had become hers and Star would never forgive herself if Marco was lost. Her chest tightened as she snapped her eyes open. 

She had to see Marco.

She had to see he was still with her, safe.

By now, the fire had been reduced to a heap of glowing embers. Through the dim light she saw his figure, his chest rising and falling. Star’s heart raced as she got up and crept around, crouching down beside Marco’s sleeping form. Her mind swirling at a rapid pace. Star reached out and placed her hand on his chest. Just feeling Marco was enough to anchor her whirlpool of thoughts. “Marco.” She whispered into the night. “Marco.” She tried again, hoping not to sound as anxious as she felt.

The young man opened his eyes and looked up to see two honey waterfalls falling onto him. He blinked and realized Star was hovering beside him. “What? You okay?” He asked sleepily as she nudged him. “You have a bad dream?” He asked her. Star couldn’t bring herself to consider her thoughts to be something as harmless as a dream. But she also couldn’t bring herself to explain her worries to Marco, almost believing that if she said them aloud, that they would one day come true. She swallowed and nodded. Marco unzipped his bag and moved over as far as he could so Star could get in beside him. She quickly laid down and zipped the bag back up to keep out the night’s cool breeze. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe.” He muttered, wrapping an arm around her.

Her heart ached.

“I’ll keep you safe too, Marco.”


End file.
